Disclaimer: the world of Alagaƫsia is copyright to Cristpher Paolini. The characters of the story are mine, unless they go into hiding.
Arms crossed over his chest, the village leader-- Kornan, scowled at Nypa. Behind the sinewy, middle-aged man stood more of the villagers, some who were his fellows in the council-- likely there to support him. The rest were ordinary villagers however, having shown up to gawk at the dragons, and no doubt also to see how everything developed.
"You know that you and Jh'tadur have always been a welcome part of this community, Nypa. Certainly we were having our doubts in the beginning, when your dragon was just out of her egg, but you proved yourselves to be well worth it. That one however..."
Kornan paused to indicate Shruikan, who had laid down beside Jh'tadur after the exhaustive trek back to Rochelle, by now the black dragon was probably asleep and oblivious to the discussion about him.
"One dragon is a considerable drain on the wildlife around here, not to forget anything we can spare from our herds. This Shruikan, as you told us his name was, is even larger than Jh'tadur and will certainly require more food. The matter of that he is injured and likely to require a lot of time and care to recover isn't exactly making things better".
One part of Nypa fumed, wanting nothing more than to shout at the village leader for his denial. Fortunately a more sensible part of her was the strongest however, and with a quiet sigh-- she conferred quickly with Jh'tadur. It was clear to them both that Shruikan wasn't going to have the strenght to go anywhere for some time, even with they doing what they could to heal him. So it would have to be a compromise...
Walking forwards a few steps, Jh'tadur lowered her head until it was on level with the villagers.
I will take full responsibility, for Shruikan and for any hunting we may do. If you take the cost of providing him with a initial meal of two oxen, I will take my hunts days away. Also, I will bring back live animals to replace those you have lost, provided that some of you are willing to aid me in their capture.
Still looking quite unhappy about the entire matter, Kornan turned around to confer with his fellow council members, his almost white hair stirring in the wind as he did so. The man always tried to do what was best for the village, and he did listen to other people's advice, Nypa couldn't fault him for that. But he had that irking habit of being stubborn, once he had become convinced that something was bad, it could be a pain to make him change his mind.
Nypa straightened herself, slightly pushing back the hat she wore.
"At the very least, give us a month or two, then make your final decision once you know how effective Jh'tadur's suggestion is. By then, Shruikan should be well enough to travel if necessary" she said. Of-course, by then it was also likely that the male dragon had proven himself useful, she thought-- holding back a smile.
--
The village council took their time with discussing the matter, and watching from the shade under Jh'tadur's wing where she had gone to wait shortly after speaking for Shruikan-- Nypa found herself grow increasingly impatient. She didn't begrudge them taking some time to discuss the matter, but now when an hour had passed, things started to move into the realm of the inexcuseable.
As a dragonrider, wife and with a injured dragon that needed healing, she had better things to do than to stand in the sun while the council were probably arguing just for the sake of arguing. Truthfully, the only time she had seen them work quickly and efficently was during the attacks by slavers who had stumbled over the town a few years ago.
Maybe I should go looking for another group of slavers. They certainly need something to make them act rather than spend decades talking and annoying each other, Jh'tadur said cheerfully. And her eyes glittered with sardonic humor as she turned her head to look at Nypa.
Ah, I wish. They would still come running to us in the end, like they did back then. Unfortunately...
Nypa snorted, giving the dragon a light slap, "then it would be up to you I'm afraid. As much as I would love something to wake up our fellow villagers, these days I'm not as young and spry as I was back then".
Amused, Jh'tadur uttered a rumble, then she suddenly arched her neck-- letting her rider know that one of the village council had just came out of the house they had used for their meeting. And soon Kornan was back with them, arms crossed as he watched the three of them silently for several moments before speaking.
"While I have my reservations about this, the majority of the council have accepted Jh'tadur's offer. You have a initial two months, and at the end of that time we will have seen if it is effective" he said, and with a bow, he turned around and walked back towards his own house in the village. And Nypa allowed herself a wry smile at the man's badly concealed annoyance over the decision, chuckling as she turned to the two dragons.
"Looks like you'll be staying with us, Shruikan," she said, looking at the black male with a grin, "think you can manage the walk over to mine and Jh'tadur's home? It's not more than half a kilometer, and the villagers should be bringing you a meal within an hour".
The dragon inclined his head in affirmation, and then he groaned as he stood back up at his feet, and might have dropped right down at his belly again if Jh'tadur hadn't moved in to support him. So-- tired, hungry and dusty, they started towards the farm outside of the village that was the home of Nypa, her family and Jh'tadur.
